Caribou Inuit

ETHNONYM: Kinnepatoo

Caribou Inuit refers to five independent groups (Qairnirmiut,
Harvaqtuurmiut, Hauniqtuurmiut, Paallirmiut, and Ahiarmiut) of central
Canadian Inuit located on and inland from the west shore of Hudson Bay
between 61° and 65° N and 90° and 102° W. The
name "Caribou" was applied by Europeans on the Fifth Danish
Thule Expedition (1921-1924) and reflects the groups' reliance on
the caribou for food and raw materials. The five groups did not view
themselves as part of any larger overarching group. The Caribou Inuit
today number about three thousand located in the villages of Chesterfield
Inlet, Rankin Inlet, Whale Cove, Eskimo Point, and Baker Lake. They speak
dialects of the Inuit-Inupiaq language.

The prehistory of the Caribou Inuit is unclear. First contact with Whites
was in 1612-1613, although regular contact began only after the founding
of what was to become Churchill, Manitoba, in 1717. From then on, the
Caribou Inuit have undergone a slow but steady acculturation into Canadian
society, involving the use of guns in hunting and the introduction of
trapping, regular trade, and whaling. Acculturative pressure intensified
following resettlement in the permanent villages after 1950 and the
introduction of Canadian schools, television, and wage labor. In response
to these forces and White claims on traditional Inuit land, the Caribou
Inuit have been actively involved in Inuit political organizations.

The traditional winter dwelling was the snow house, replaced by the
skin-covered snow house and then the conical skin tent in the warmer
months. Camps numbered from a few people to as many as fifty, and split or
coalesced as food supplies allowed. Beginning in 1950, the Caribou Inuit
along with some Netsilik and Iglulik Inuit were settled by the Canadian
government in prefabricated housing in the five villages listed above.

The traditional economy centered on the caribou, which was the primary
source for food and raw material for clothings, tents, tools, and
containers. Caribou hunting remains an important activity, though the
traditional methods of herding and lancing from kayaks have been replaced
by rifles and snowmobiles. Fishing was and is also important, again with
traditional methods and equipment giving way to modern ones. Although each
group was associated with a particular region, land was generally open to
all who wanted to exploit it. Today, wage labor, craft production for the
tourist trade, and welfare have become important sources of income.

The patrilocally extended family residing in one large or several adjacent
dwellings was the basic social unit. The oldest capable male was the group
leader (
ihumataq).
Polygynous marriage (especially sororal polygyny) was common, and
polyandry has been reported. Intermarriage between different groups was
evidently common. Patrilocal residence was the norm, though other
arrangements were permitted.

No centralized authority existed for any of the five groups nor for the
Caribou Inuit in general. Cooperation in hunting and trade was based on
kinship and residential patterns. Partnerships of various types common in
other Inuit groups were relatively unimportant.

Caribou Inuit myths are similar in focus to those other central Inuit
groups, though somewhat less elaborated. The caribou figured centrally in
the supernatural world; it was protected by Pingna (a female supernatural
figure who also protected other living things) and was the object of
various taboos. Hela (air) was the source of misfortune. Shamans treated
illness and predicted the future. Singing and song feasts were important
and frequent expressive activities.